October 20, 2004 -- KBA North America, a leading sheetfed offset press manufacturer based in Williston, Vt., posted one of its finest Graph Expo and Converting Shows in recent years, emphasizing KBA’s surpassing growth in the commercial sheetfed market. The trade show, held in Chicago from Oct. 10-13, delivered highly-motivated printers who purchased KBA presses on the spot. Long lines formed at the KBA booth to take home sharp printing samples from an array of its presses while crowds stood three deep to listen to KBA’s daily presentations of its new highly-technological equipment direct from Drupa 2004, where KBA unveiled more new sheetfed presses and related products, than any other manufacturer. “At Drupa 2004 KBA was named the technology leader for sheetfed offset presses,” says Ralf Sammeck, President and CEO of KBA North America. “But at Graph Expo we could demonstrate this amazing technology to the North American market.” Among the blockbuster sales at Graph Expo were: Unimac Graphics, a leading commercial printer located in Carlstadt, NJ, purchased two new KBA presses: a KBA Rapida 142 56-inch eight-color plus coater and perfector large-format sheetfed press as well as a KBA Rapida 105 41-inch eight-color perfector with tower coater. This will be Unimac’s third and fourth KBA presses. Lithographix, a leading Los Angeles commercial printer, has agreed to purchase a super large format KBA Rapida 205 81-inch six-color sheetfed press with coater, the first of its kind on the West Coast. The new press is due to be delivered in the spring of 2005. Challenge Printing Company, a premier Minnesota-based commercial sheetfed printer serving five national print segments: commercial, point-of-purchase, folding carton, UV print, and pressure sensitive labels, purchased the first new Drupa-model Rapida 105 41-inch six-color sheetfed press with aqueous and UV coating from the show floor at Graph Expo 2004. The new press was delivered immediately following the show. In addition to the above sales, KBA finalized further press contracts to commercial printers, including a contract signed for the first KBA Genius 52 in North America and a large format Rapida 142 56-inch eight-color sheetfed press. The centerpiece of the booth was the new Rapida 105, described by the trade press as “the new standard in printing technology.” The newly-designed Rapida 105 41-inch sheetfed press during its live demonstrations performed fully automatic plate changes in less than 4 minutes, and was running at a show-stopping 18,000 sph. Engineers at KBA have expanded its capabilities to include a new extended functionality to control sheet infeed at the control console; a motor-driven shaftless feeder; an optional side lay-free infeed; ability to print stock from 40 lb paper to 48 pt. board; as well as the new cutting-edge Qualitronic II inline sheet inspection system; video register, Densitronic closed loop color control, and ink-temperature control for optimum print quality. Another show highlight was the new Genius 52 20” offset press, dedicated to the short run color market. This revolutionary cutting-edge printing press performed live demonstrations, where visitors were impressed with its ultra short make ready times of less than 5 minutes, the high quality print results and the low startup waste of less than 10 sheets – a perfect press to go into new markets. Daily shuttle visits to CrossTech Communications Inc., a local Chicago on-demand print shop, were available to view the KBA 74 Karat digital offset press with coater in action on CrossTech’s pressroom floor. “Graph Expo 2004 show was a winner for us in many ways,” says Sammeck. “We sold many printing presses to highly-qualified printers, some who we have partnered with before, and some new customers. Our daily presentations drew new potential clients who expressed solid interest in doing business with KBA in the future. They were quite impressed with our vast array of presses, our technological expertise, and our reputation to partner with their growing companies and help them to differentiate themselves from their competition.”